Summary
The board approved Robert C. Burns’s request to change parcel boundaries and waive part of the minimum lot-size requirement for 844 Riverview Drive so an existing driveway conveyance no longer requires an easement; the change reduces nonconformity but leaves the lot below the current minimum.
The City of Morgantown Board of Zoning Appeals granted a variance that will modify parcel boundaries affecting 844 Riverview Drive so the property can legally incorporate a portion of an adjacent parcel currently used for driveway access. Planning staff told the board the change would increase 844’s lot area but the resulting parcel would remain smaller than the current 7,200 square‑foot minimum; the applicant requested relief for 2,100 square feet of minimum lot size.
Robert C. Burns told the board the driveway access across the neighboring parcel had been established by a civil agreement dating to the 1940s; Burns said the intent of the conveyance was to simplify maintenance and marketability by making the driveway part of 844’s parcel so an easement would no longer be necessary. Planning staff confirmed the proposed reconfiguration would reduce nonconformity but still fall short of the modern minimum lot size.
Board members discussed whether the change would negatively affect the neighboring parcel’s parking or use. Staff explained the neighbor’s parking and use would remain nonconforming but unchanged in character by the reconfiguration; there was no public opposition at the hearing. The board unanimously accepted the findings of fact and voted to grant the requested lot‑size variance for 844 Riverview Drive with the standard condition that any future site changes comply with the city code or return for further relief. The decision may be appealed to the Circuit Court of Monongalia County within 30 days.
